LEAVE LAWS POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

www.utwomen.org

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) has remained unchanged since it was signed into law in 1993. Due toFMLA’s narrow eligibility criteria for both employees and worksites, only 56% of employees in the US arecovered for unpaid job-protected leave. Although many states have responded with their own leave laws, acrossUtah and more than a dozen other states, FMLA continues to provide the only family and medical leaveprotection for workers. Today, tens of thousands of Utahns have no job protection leave options, whichdisadvantages Utah and its' residents in a multitude of ways. Utah can better support families by consideringthese policy options:

For more detail and background, see the executivesummary or the full report of the associated whitepaper titled: "Utah is Changing: Should Our Leave

Laws Follow Suit?"

The Utah Anti-Discrimination Act requires employers with 15 ormore employees and all state and political divisions to provide“reasonable accommodations” to employees affected by pregnancy,childbirth, breastfeeding, or related conditions. In some cases, thiscould require covered employers to provide unpaid, job-protectedtime off as a reasonable accommodation, but it is not guaranteed.Instead, expectant mothers bear the burden of requestingreasonable accommodations. FMLA continues to provide the onlysubstantive leave protection for Utah mothers. Utah should followother conservative and Rocky Mountain West states by expandingthe scope of workers entitled to job-protected pregnancy leave,offering employees greater discretion and flexibility to make safeand healthy pregnancy decisions.

Expand pregnancy leave protections tocover more Utahns.1

Utah has no law requiring private employers to provide employeeswith crime victim leave, except for those who must attenddepositions or hearings in response to subpoenas. Utah legislatorsshould consider a law guaranteeing Utah crime victims with job-protected leave to attend proceedings in their case generally, ratherthan only when they are required by court order or subpoena.

Protect crime victims' right to seek justicewithout fear of losing their job.2

As Utah’s current congressional delegation continues todrive the conversation on paid family leave within theRepublican party, Utah legislators should form aserious, bipartisan working group to evaluate thechanging landscape of paid family leave policies anddevelop practical approaches for our rapidly growingand changing state.

Develop a serious, bipartisan workinggroup to evaluate plans for paid leave,paid sick leave.

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Consider potential expansions of FMLA coverage byincreasing eligibility criteria in any of the followingways: reduce the hours requirement an employee needsto work in the previous 12 months, reduce the numberof months requirement the employee has worked forthe employer, or cover employers with less than 50employees.

Expand eligibility criteria of existingFMLA.4